Adult Bemisia tabaci biotype B can induce silverleafing in squash.

Bemisia tabaci biotype B is one of three genetic groups able to induce silverleafing in squash. Several earlier studies had observed that this physiological change was induced only through the feeding of juvenile whiteflies. This study uses adult males only to show that after 11 days the adult males were able to begin to induce silverleafing. Further, the response was density-dependent with 120 adults inducing the first signs of silverleafing in 11 days, 90 adults in 13 days and 60 adults in 15 days.